TOMRA Acquires Compac Sorting Machine Manufacturer

TOMRA Systems ASA, has signed an agreement to acquire Compac Holding Ltd. Closing of the transaction is expected to take place during the first quarter of 2017, subject to approval by the New Zealand Overseas Investment Office.

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“The food market is large and continuously growing with requirements around food safety and quality becoming increasingly more stringent. Food producers are also consolidating, becoming larger, more sophisticated, and more global. As a leading technology supplier into this industry, we see clear advantages in mirroring this trend. With the acquisition of Compac, we reinforce TOMRA’s leading position within the food segment and we will be the first player to present an offering to our customers for sorting fresh and processed foods with both lane and bulk sorters,” says Stefan Ranstrand, TOMRA’s President and CEO.

Compac is a New Zealand-based provider of postharvest solutions and services to the global fresh produce industry. The company designs, manufactures, sells and services packing house automation systems that sort fresh produce based on weight, size, shape, color, surface blemishes, and internal quality.

Established in 1984, today Compac employs approximately 700 people across locations in New Zealand, Australia, U.S., China, Latin America, South Africa, Spain, and Italy. Compac has a leading position within the sorting of apples, kiwifruit, cherries, avocados, and citrus. About 6,000 Compac sorting lanes have been sold worldwide in more than 40 markets.

“Market forces have driven double-digit growth at Compac over recent years, and we have rapidly become a global business from humble New Zealand roots. Joining forces with TOMRA will enable us to continue to meet the increasing demands for our products and services in a more scalable and operationally efficient manner,” says Compac CEO Mike Riley.

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TOMRA Sorting Food designs and manufactures sensor-based sorting machines for the food industry. More than 5,900 systems are installed at growing, packing, and processing operations worldwide.

The company provides high-performance optical sorters, graders, peeling, and process analytics systems for nuts and seeds, dried fruits, potato products, fruits, vegetables, meat, and seafood.

“Compac serves complimentary food-sorting markets, which is a very welcome addition to the TOMRA Sorting food business,” says Executive Vice President and Head of TOMRA Sorting Volker Rehrmann. “We see our customers’ needs evolving and with our complementary solutions and an increased ability to leverage our combined food sorting technologies, we are ready to meet future customer needs.” 

“The geographical coverage of the combined companies is extensive, and customers will find a one-stop shop for sorting, peeling, and analytical solutions for a wide variety of food products. The integration of lane sorting and bulk sorting within the fresh and processed food industries is a natural development for many applications and the leadership positions of both TOMRA and Compac will now provide a unique capability in this regard,” commented Senior Vice President and Head of TOMRA Sorting Food Ashley Hunter.

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